Back to Me (Carolina Rebels 1)

Noah: When am I not? ;)

“Have you thought about what kind of wedding dress you want?” Mom asks, distracting me from responding.

“Not really.”

“What about how many people you’re inviting?”

“Nope.”

“What kind of food will be served at the reception?”

“No.”

Mom huffs and twists in her seat again. “You’re supposed to be planning a wedding, Meredith. That means you need details. Where is my daughter who loves to plan? Let’s start with what you know so far.”

“That I’m marrying Noah in our hometown. That’s it.”

Dad laughs while Mom shakes her head at me.

“We need to get started. Have you even picked a date yet?”

“Yes, I have. August seventh.”

Finally, Mom is happy about something wedding-related. I have a feeling my time here is going to be focused on the wedding. It doesn’t seem right to do it without Noah, so I tell Mom she can make me a list of what needs to be decided, email it to me, and then once I get home, Noah and I can discuss it. My first night there is spent catching up and just enjoying time with my parents. I decided to spend time with them instead of going to see Ashley.

Thanksgiving Day comes and I help Mom out in the kitchen. My parents and Noah’s parents alternate hosting and this year, it’s my parents’ turn. It’s so busy that I barely have time to talk to Noah. Too soon, his parents along with his sister, her husband, and baby Nichol

as are here. I hold my breath, waiting to see how Ashley will treat me.

They greet my mom and dad first. Carol hugs me out of politeness and then comes William. He grins, gives me a bear hug, gushes over seeing me. He makes a big deal about my scars and how he thanked the heavens that I was okay. God, I love Noah’s dad. Then, I’m face to face with Ashley. She smiles and hugs me.

“You’re forgiven,” she whispers to me. “My brother is happy and I’m not going hold a grudge anymore.” She pulls back and adds, “Besides, Noah called me and made me promise to be nice.”

I laugh. “Well, thank you.”

“Did someone mention me?”

My eyes snap over to that voice and I accidentally scream, scaring the baby, and run over to jump into his arms. “What are you doing here?” I whisper in awe.

“I wanted to be here with you. I have to leave shortly after we finish eating, but something is better than nothing, yeah?”

“I love you.”

He gives me a quick kiss and sets me back on my feet. “Someone hand me that crying baby,” he says.

Noah is able to calm Nicholas, and I apologize to Ashley for making him cry. She finishes introducing me to her husband, Oliver. I keep looking at Noah. I can’t believe he’s here. Now things feel perfect. True to her word, Ashley is nice to me. We even catch up on our lives and it feels like I got my best friend back. Hell, it feels like I got half of my family back. We were so close and it’s great to be back in touch with everyone. It’s the best Thanksgiving I’ve had since I was in high school.

When it comes time for Noah to leave, we walk outside together to wait for his cab. The air is chilly and I hug my arms around his waist to use him for body heat. I’m so happy he’s here.

“What did you do with Leo?” Sylvia wasn’t supposed to get him until tomorrow.

“Marco offered to watch him tonight. Is that really what you’re going to ask me?”

“Yes. What else am I supposed to ask you?” Did I miss something?

“You’re supposed to ask me how amazing I am.” He grins and I laugh.

“I already know how amazing you are. Thank you for coming.”